From Sunday 6 November, the lines from Reading, Heathrow, and Shenfield will connect with the central tunnels of the Elizabeth line between Paddington and Whitechapel – opening up new direct journeys across the capital. This means Londoners will benefit from:
- New direct links through central London
- Increased operating hours and Sunday services providing a seven days a week service
- More frequent train services between Whitechapel and Paddington
- Bond Street station, at the heart of London’s West End, opening too
The integration of Elizabeth line services will bring a huge range of extra benefits, including reduced journey times, additional capacity, greater accessibility, and better connectivity to jobs, opportunities, and leisure for communities across London and the South East. People landing at Heathrow Airport will now be able to travel straight through central London to areas such as Farringdon and Canary Wharf in as little as 36 and 45 minutes respectively on the weekend and 40 and 51 minutes respectively during the week.
Customers will be able to use the Elizabeth line seven days a week as Sunday services through central London will also get underway for the first time from Sunday 6 November. The frequency of services in the central section between Paddington and Whitechapel will increase from 12 trains per hour to up to 22 trains per hour in peak times and 16 trains per hour during off-peak. The final timetable, which will see 24 trains per hour during the peak between Paddington and Whitechapel, is on track to be in place by May 2023.
Bond Street Elizabeth line station is in line to open ahead of the new services. The step-free station will provide a new link to one of the busiest shopping directs in the UK and relieve congestion at Oxford Circus station. Two brand new ticket halls at street level, with an abundance of natural light, one at Davies Street, the other at Hanover Square – will lead passengers to the Elizabeth line platforms. In addition to station improvements, Crossrail has worked alongside Westminster Council on improvements to the urban realm surrounding the station.
Ahead of the autumn changes, from Monday 5 September, extended opening hours will run on the Elizabeth line between Paddington and Abbey Wood from around 05:30 to around 23:00.
